Council suspended after GM sacked in wake of mayoral vote hat-draw blunder

Key points

• NSW Local Government Minister Ron Hoenig has suspended Clarence Valley Council for three months and appointed John Rayner as interim administrator. The decision follows a botched mayoral declaration, after a tied vote was settled by a hat draw and the wrong candidate was named winner.
• The error led to the sacking of general manager Laura Black. Mr Hoenig said the council had voted for an external investigation into governance, administration, operations and financial management.
• Councillor Peter Johnstone, who resigned as mayor when the error came to light, criticised the move as a serious step that removes democratic representation.